Signal apparatus.



P. W. WOUD. SIGNAL APPARATUS.

y APPLICATION FILED MAR.1`1, 1914. A 1,1 1 1,345. Patented sept. 22, 1914.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

. F. W. WOOD. SIGNAL APPARATUS'.

APPLIOATIONTILED MAB.11, 1914. 1, 1 1 1,345.

Pagtented Sept 22, 1914.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2M1 f) I l wmvfssfs wf' [Ws/Avro@ I To all whom t may concern UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

muNx w. woon, or BaooirLYN,

INCORPORATED, or new Y 1,111,345. spgcinati Be it known thatI, FRANK W. Woon, a v citizen, of the United States, residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Signal Apparatis,'of which th'e following is a specification.

This invention relates to signaling apparatus and is particularly applicable where' the same signal must be transmitted to dif- Iferent points. `Itis also particularly-applicable as means for indicating the s eed ofl rotation of a'shaft or a pluralityo shafts, and in 'this -connection it has special usage aboard shi for indicating the speed o f the, shaft. or t e. speed of the twin shafts orl triple shafts where the vessel has a twin-Q 4screw drive or a triple screw drive.'

A principal object o-f the invention is to, provide vapparatus.including a plurality ofindicators disposed respectivelyv at different points, and arranged so that ifionefof the. indicators or its controlling circuit-is injured lthe other indicator or indicators'will; .continue to operate. In other words the .arrangementjs such that the indicators are,

independent of. each other.

' A. further object of the invention is to; lprovide an arrangement whereby a speed of; rotationof the shaft, which is variable may 'be imparted to the indicators in sucha wayl 'that the indicating needles or' pointers will Lnot fluctuate with. theslight variations in speed-of the shaft, but .will remain substantially steady.` uch slight variations may occur in each revolution of the shaft.' Thisy is particularly true of marine engines, 'or other'engines operating without a fly wheel. i

A further .object ofthe invention is to provide meanswhereby a plurality of .indicators may -becontrolled by a pluraiity of shafts, and in such a way that if all the shaftsJ are 4running the indicators will indi-1v cate .the average speed thereof, but if any. shaft is held s'tationary'the indicators will give the average speed of the remaining shafts. This vfeaturefof 'enabling the indicators indicate the average speed of .a plurality of shafts is particularly desirable` inconnection with marine engines, asit eliminates the computations on the different shaft speeds necessary to obtain the average. .A further4 Object of the invention is to provide an arrangement whereby the indifofaettersratent. Application Aledliarch 1.1,

alining. shafts 19, the shafts 20 being arshaft 1 9.

nection 26 YORK, assisNor. To CHARLES conY a sON 3.x, N. Y., a CORPORATION or NEW YORK.

' siGNAQiL APPARATS.

Patented Sept. 22, 1914.

i914. serial im. 823,926.

cators not only indicate the speed but the direction of the shaft.

The general object of the invention is to provide simple means for controlling an indicator or indicators on a shaft or plurality of shafts, or other rotating parts.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view illustrating one embodiment of the invention, and representing it as applied to two shafts and controlling the three indicators. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal cross'section through a flexible drive con-` nection which may constitute a feature of my invention, the purpose of which is to absorb slight variations in therotation speed and cause'a dampening or steadying effect 4ofthe indicator needle. Fig. 3 is a diagram- .matic view indicating the preferred 'form of the wiring apparatus.

Referring more particularly to the parts -10 and 11 represent a plurality of shafts the speed of rotation of which is to be indicated or signaled. It may be desired to signal .the speeds of these shafts to several points, vas forinstanceon ship board to the engine room, gun tower, and tower platform. At

` these points I may provide three indicators indicated by A, B, and C. In order to control the pointers or needles. 12-of ese indicators I prefer to impart the rotation of the shafts 10 and'll to a generator 13 of the type illustrated .in Fig. 3, and I prefer to drive this generator from the shafts 10 and 11i-by means of a dierential gear 14. For this purpose the shafts 10 and`11 may be .provided with gear wheels 15 which mesh .with piiiions 16, said pinions being carried respectively on -shafts 17, which drive meshbeveled gears 18 on oppositely disposed d isiiosed' beveled gears 28 carried in the d'fferential 'frame 24, and these beveled gears 23 mesh with opposite sides of a beveled'` gear 25 which. is carried rigidly by One of these shafts 19 or 20, for instance the shaft 19 carries a driving conple sprocket wheel if desired, but it pref-- IOU for driving the shaft 27 of the generator 13, preferably by a sprocket chain '19. This driving connection may be a simconstruction such as that illustrated in Fig.

2, that is it is a iexible connection tending to absorb slight variations in speed of rotation of the shaft .l0 and impart a substantially steady and unvarying speed of rotation to theshaft 27, the object being to prevent variations or tremors in the indicating needles 12. This iexible connection 26 preferably comprises a hub 28 which is rigid onthe shaft 19, and formed of two connected sections 28n and 28h, and these sections secure loosely between them a disk 29, the outer edge of which is formed into sprocket teeth 30 near which a rim 31 is clamped. It is understood that the disk 29 is loose on the hub 28. In order that the rotation of the shaft will rotate the driving connection I provide springs 32 and 33, on opposite sides of the disk 29, Which are preferably of spiral form,`th'e inner ends being connected to the hub as at 34 and the outer ends being connected to the `rim as at 35. These springs are preferably i .coiledf in opposite .directions so that one the number of the armature poles 37 of coils in series.

- operates to impart a rotation to the rim from the shaft when the shaft rotates in onel` direction, 'and the other performs the same function for the opposite direction of rotation.

The generator 13 is preferably a twophase alternating vgenerator with separate windings correspondingto the different indicators. In Fi 3 in order to avoid con.-

fusion I have ilustrated simply a wiring' tor two of the indicators, but for three indicators there. would be 4anotherwinding arranged like the separate windings shown. This generator preferably carries on its shaft 27 a rotating field 36 having a plurality of permanent magnetic poles preferably of half the armature ringv 38. The armature coils 39 of alternate poles are connected in series while the intermediate coils 40 are similarly connected, but on a branch r'om the point 41 so lthat from this point 41 there are .two windings in parallel taking the alternate In;this wa passing from the generator we have a con uctor 42 which takes the current generated'in the coils 39 and the wire '.43 taking the currentffr'om the coils 40. Evidently the .phases of the currents in the-conductors 42jand 43"'jare opposite to each other. These conductors arg connected with the indicators preferably by electric cables a, b, and a, and. by the wiring indicated in Fi Such an indicator may be provided with two A oppositely disposed' main field coils'4'4 andda'pfair of smaller field coils 45, the former coi s 44 lbeing connected in-series with the-conductor 43;. and 'the coils "45 being-connected mfseries with the conductor l42.

In onel or other of th'e Lconducteraf42, 43', I prefer to connet aregulating coil `such as the coil 46 which may be adjusted to r ulate the needle 12 of the indicator. e coils 44 and 45 yare connected -iby parallel conductors 47 and 48 with a common return conductor 49 which leads back to the point .41.' The poles of the'ield 27 are of alternate character, so that when"A the field .is rotated opposite' phases are generated in the conductors 42 and 43. If the generator is rotated in a reverse direction these .phases will be reversed. and the needle 12 will be movedin reverse direction therefrom. Hence 'the' indicators may indicate a rotation of the shafts in either direction. For

instance in a marine engine they will indicate ahead or astern vWhere it is necessaryto illuminate the indicator this `is most conveniently done by @means of a small lamp 5() having terminals .51 for connection with a lighting circuit. In this lapparatus the load isalways the same and the system cannot become unbalanced.

'zoA

It is understood that the embodiment of, i

the invention described above isA onl one of the many forms or embodiments' t einvention ma take, and I do not wish to .be limited in t e practice my invention, nor

in the construction of my claims to the 'particular embodiment set forth. What I claim is 1. In apparatus of the class described in vcombination a generator arranged to be driven by a rotating part, a pluralityof independent circuits passing'. through .said generator, and afspeed indicaaitor` in each of said circuits controlled by the current in its circuit and independentof the current `in the other circuits.

2., In apparatus of the clSS desrbed in combination a generator `arranged to. .be

driven by a rotating part, a plurality of in dependent circuits .passing through said generator, anda speed indicator in; each .of said circuits indicating the speed and direction of rotation of 't e rotating.' part com Vtrolled `by the `current in itscircult. and 'independent of the current in the other circuits.

3. In apparatus of the classydescribed in combinatlon a connection. for riving said generator. from .arotating part, a plurality of independent circuits passing through said eneator, and a speed indicator in eacho .said circuits controlled by the current in its circuit and independent of the current the vother circuits.

4. In .apparatus of theclass'ldescribedin generator, a flexible driving combination a lurality of rotatin partage...

fplu'rality of in icating devices in e endent.

of each other, and .means for contro ing all of said-.indicating devices from.all.of sai d rotatin'g parts. Y

apparatus of the :lass

combinatlon a plurality of rotating parte,

a Flurality of indicatingldevices independent o each other, a driving device for driving said indicating devices, and a differential mechanism for'actuating Said driving device from said'rotating parts.

6. In apparatus of the class described in combination a plurality of rotatin parts, a

lurality of indicators, a` shaft adapted to driven at a variable s eed, indicatin mechanism for indicating t e speed of -sai shaft, and a flexible driving connection for driving said indicating mechanism from said shaft and adapted to absorb variations in the rotating speed of' said shaft to impart a substantial y uniform torque eiect to said indicating mechanism.

7. In apparatus of the class described in combination a differential gear, a plurality of shafts for driving said differential gear, a

.riations in the speed generator driven from said diierential gear, a plurality of indicators connected with said generator and adapted to indicate the di-A rection and average speed oaf said shafts, and` circuits connecting said generator with said indicating devices.

8. In apparatus of the class combination a differential ear, a plurality of shafts for driving said ierential gear, a generator driven from said dierential gear, a plurality of indicators connected with said the direction and average speed of said shafts, circuits connecting said generator with' said indicating devices and-a exible connection between said dlerential gear and said generator tending to`L absorb vaof rotation of said described -in dicator in circuit with generator and adapted to indicate 1 'shafts and transmit a substantial uniform speed of rotation to said generator.

9. In apparatus of the class described, a

shaft, an, alternating -current generator driven thereby, and an indicator actuated by said generator indicating the revolutions per. minite and the direction of rotation of said sha 10. In a speed and direction indicating apparatus, the combination with a'pl'urality of rotating parts, of an electric generator, a differential gear, separate dr1v1ng'connec-- tions between said rotating parts and-differential gear, a driving connection between the said gear and generator, and an electrical inthe generator and 1niiuenced thereby for indicating the average speed of the said rotating parts.

11. In'a speed paratus, the combination with a plurality of rotating parts, of an electric generator, a differential gearfseparate driving connections =between said rotating parts and differential gear, a driving connection between the said gear and generator, cal indicator incircuit with the generator, saidindicator' havin a pointer movable in either direction to in icate the average speed and direction of rotation of said rotating parts.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set and direction indicating apand an electri- A 

